Use these updates to boost your returns: 3M, Stantec and Cisco Systems

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3M COMPANY $196 is a buy. The company (New York symbol MMM; Income Growth Dividend Payer Portfolio, Manufacturing & Industry sector; Shares outstanding: 579.4 million; Market cap: $113.6 billion; Dividend yield: 3.0%; Dividend Sustainability Rating: Above Average; www.3m.com) raised your quarterly dividend by 0.7% with the March 2021 payment. Investors now receive $1.48 a share instead of $1.47. The new annual rate of $5.92 yields 3.0%. The company has paid dividends continuously for over 100 years and has increased that rate each year for the past 63 years. The COVID-19 pandemic continues to spur strong demand for 3M’s safety equipment, including N95 respirator masks (they block 95% of very small particles, including those containing the virus). In the quarter ended March 31, 2020, 3M’s sales rose 9.6%, to $8.85 billion from $8.08 billion a year earlier. If you disregard unusual items, earnings improved 26.5%, to $2.77 from $2.19. 3M is a buy. STANTEC INC. $58 is a buy. The engineering firm (Toronto symbol STN; Cyclical-Growth Payer Portfolio, Manufacturing & Industry…